If you get your health insurance through New Jersey’s Medicaid program, also known as NJ FamilyCare, you must renew your coverage every year. NJ FamilyCare does not have an open enrollment period, like many commercial and employer-sponsored health insurance plans. Instead, you need to renew your NJ FamilyCare each year on the anniversary of the day you enrolled.
How Do I Renew My NJ FamilyCare/Medicaid Coverage?
In order to stay covered, you must respond to your NJ FamilyCare renewal packet. Renewal packets are mailed to the address that NJ FamilyCare has on file for you. If you move or your contact information changes, call NJ FamilyCare as soon as possible at 800.701.0710 to let them know you have moved and to make sure you receive your renewal packet.
The renewal packet may ask you to include information about changes to your income or household composition. Respond to mail from NJ FamilyCare right away to avoid a gap in your coverage.
Your managed care organization (the company that administers your Medicaid health plan) will send you reminders that your renewal packet is coming. To learn when your renewal is coming, look for postcards from your health plan or letters from the state or county board. The five NJ FamilyCare managed care organizations are:
- Aetna Better Health of New Jersey
- Fidelis Care
- Horizon NJ Health
- UnitedHealthcare Community Plan
- Wellpoint
Tips to Stay Covered
- Confirm your address and contact information well in advance of your renewal month
- Look out for mail, like your renewal packet and postcards or letters about the renewal process
- Respond to calls from county or state workers
- Submit forms and documentation promptly
- Put your policy number on every page of every document that you submit to NJ FamilyCare
- Keep records of when you submitted which documents and save copies of each document you send into NJ FamilyCare
- Contact NJ FamilyCare 800.701.0710 if:
- You don’t receive a packet when expected
- You experience long delays
- You need to request an extension
If You No Longer Qualify
If your NJ FamilyCare coverage is terminated, you’ll receive notice and instructions for appeal. Read the reason for the denial and remember that there is a timeline in which you must appeal.
If you go through the appeals process and are still found ineligible for NJ FamilyCare, you can apply for other coverage through Get Covered NJ (the state’s health insurance marketplace). Losing NJ FamilyCare is a qualifying life event, so you get a 60-day special enrollment period. For more information about insurance and autism benefits, read our Open Enrollment article.
Need Assistance?
New Jersey Citizen Action Education Fund provides free health care enrollment assistance to New Jersey residents. They can help you through the NJ FamilyCare renewal process. They can also help you understand and apply for affordable health care coverage options through the insurance marketplace. They offer free, one-on-one health care enrollment assistance.
You can get in touch with New Jersey Citizen Action’s health care enrollment assistance program by completing this form. For questions, contact them at:
Phone: 888.654.3893
Email: getcovered@njcitizenaction.org
You can also reach out to Autism New Jersey’s 800.4.AUTISM Helpline any time for help clarifying or resolving your coverage issues. Contact us by calling 800.4.AUTISM or by emailing information@autismnj.org. Autism New Jersey is here every step of the way!